Buying and lighting calculator · Beef

How much beef short ribs do I buy and when do I light?

Beef short ribs, the short ribs of American barbecue, are the strip of ribs from the plate with a thick layer of meat over the bone. Butchers usually sell them as plates of three or four bones weighing 1.5 to 2 kg. The cut is rich in collagen and fat: it takes its time to soften, but at low temperature it turns juicy and falls apart. Between the bone, the fat that renders and the water that evaporates, only about half of the weight you buy reaches the plate, which is why we count 440 g raw per person. Time depends more on the thickness of the meat than on the kilos: plan 8 to 10 hours in the kamado at 120 °C with gentle smoke, until the probe slides in with no resistance.

How to ask for it

For 4 people: Ask for beef short rib plates of three or four bones with plenty of meat over the bone, 2 kg in total, all about the same thickness so they finish together.

Short ribs lose about half to bone, fat and water: 440 g raw leaves roughly 200 g of meat on the plate. 95-96 °C (203 °F) in the thickest part; the probe slides in with no resistance.

How we calculate it

We start from a reasonable cooked portion (about 200 g of meat on the plate, 170 g of cleaned fish) and convert it to raw weight using each cut's bone and trim loss. "Hungry" adds 25 %. We round up to what is actually sold: quarter kilos, whole pieces, units.

To the cook time (per kilo or per piece, at each method's temperature) we add the kamado's lighting and stabilising (20-45 min depending on the method, as on the recipe pages), the rest, and a margin for long cooks, which vary from one piece to the next. Times are approximate: your kamado, the wind and the charcoal decide; on big cuts, trust the probe.

Frequently asked questions

How much beef short rib per person?

Plan on about 440 g of raw short rib per person, bone included. Between the bone, the fat that renders and the water lost in the smoke, you end up with roughly 200 g of meat on the plate. With plenty of sides you can drop to 400 g; if it is the only main, go up to 550 g.

How many hours do beef short ribs take in the kamado?

At 120 °C, 8 to 10 hours, until the probe reads 95 °C in the thickest part and slides in with no resistance. A three-bone plate of around 2 kg usually takes about 9 hours. Then wrap it in foil and a towel and rest it for an hour in a cooler before slicing.

What temperature do you smoke short ribs at in a kamado?

Indirect, with the kamado closed, between 110 and 135 °C. We set 120 °C: it is the point where the fat renders gently and the collagen has time to soften without the meat drying out. The Weber and Kamado Joe guides sit in that same range.

Other Beef cuts

← All cuts

Approximate figures. Sources and the portion rule are in "How we calculate it".